Carrier and riddle attachment for potato-harvesters.



PATENTBD MAY 31, 1904.

- L. 0. DOWDBN.

CARRIER AND RIDDLE ATTACHMENT FOR POTATO HARVESTBRS.

ILED DBO. 5, 1903.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1 X Y 4 1mm,

IRE Mom! mzns mow-uruo" WAsHlNOION, 0, c.

No. 761,458. PATENTED MAY 31', 1 904.

L. G. DOWDEN.

GARR-IER AND RIDDLE ATTACHMENT FOR POTATO HARVESTE'RS. I

APPLICATION FILED DEC. 5, 1903. no MODEL.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

v Batented May 31, 1904.

1 P TENT OFFICE.

LEMUEncYRUs DOWDE N OF PRAIRIE CITY, IOWA.

CARRIER AND RIDDLE ATTACHMENT'FOR POTATO-HARVESTERS- SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 761,458, dated. May 31, 1904. Application filed December 5, 1903. Serial No. 183,983. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern: v

Be it known that I, LEMUEL CYRUS .Dow- DEN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Prairie City, in the county of Jasper and State of Iowa, have invented a new and use-' ful Carrier and Riddle Attachment for Potato- Harvesters, of which the following is a specification.

and circular sprocket-wheels with a frame and an endless carrier, as hereinafter'set'forth, pointed out in my claim, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a top view of the frame and the endless carrier and means for operating it. Fig. 2 is a side view that shows one side of the frame removed and the positions of the sprocket-wheels relative to each other and the chain, and dotted lines indicate the change ofpositions of the'sprockets and chain when in operation. Fig. 3 is a side view of a'potatoharvester and shows my invention applied as required for practical use. V

The numerals 10 designate the mating sides of the frame rigidly connected by a cross-bar 12 at the central portions of their lower edges, a rotatable shaft 13 in bearings 14 at the front of their lower edges.

Elliptic sprocket-wheels 15 are fixed to the shaft 13 inside of the sides 10 of the frame,

' and corresponding elliptic sprocket-wheels 16 are in adjustable bearings 17 attached to the rear ends of the sides 10 and in the same horizontal plane of the shaft 13, but in a rightangled position relative to the sprockets 15 on the shaft 13.

Circular sprocket-wheels 18 in bearings 19, fixed to the sides 10 of the frame, are located between the sprockets 15 and 16 and in an elevated position, as shown in Fig. 2and as required, to be engaged at their tops only by the endless carrier 20, mounted upon the shaft 13 to be rotated, by means of a chain and gearing, in a common way.

In the practical operation of my invention when the shaft 13 is rotated the sprockets 15, fixed thereto, will actuate the endless carrier 20, as required, to convey potatoes and ground rearward from a plow in front of the carrier, and the carrier will be alternately raised and lowered at each end by the elliptic sprockets at the ends of the carrier, as required, to shake the carrier and the ground thereon in the manner of a riddle to facilitate separating the ground from the potatoes, and at the same time the endless carrier while in motion will be thrown upon the circular sprockets 18 every time either end of the carrier is lowered 'by the elliptic sprockets, and such intermittent contact of the endless carrier with the circular sprocket will jar the upper portion of the carrier to riddle the ground from the potatoes while being moved rearward on the carrier to drop upon the ground in rear of the harvester.

Having thus described the purpose of my invention and its construction and operation, the practical utility thereof will be obvious to persons familiar with the art to which it appertains.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

An auxiliary endless carrier and riddle for potato-harvesters comprising a frame adapted to be fixed to the rear end of a carriage in rear of an endless carrier, a rotatable shaft mounted in the front end of the frame and elliptic sprocket-wheels fixed on the end portions thereof, elliptic sprocket wheels in bearings adjustably fixed to the rear end of the frame and their widest diameters in rightangled position to the widest diameters of the elliptic sprocket-Wheels on the shaft at the arranged and combined to operate in the manfi'lont enld offthe frame1 lforalternately liftilng ner set forth for the purposes stated. is e en s 0 an en ess carrier, circu an i sprocket-Wheels at the central portion of the LEMUEL CYRUS D OWDhN 5 frame and their axles in a plane above the Witnesses:

axles of the elliptic sprocket-Wheels and an A. A. ARNOLD, endless carrier ontheellipticsprocket-Wheels, N. D. RIDDLE. 

